


Swimming Lesson

by Ren_Maisley



Series: FE3H Fluffcember 2020 [11]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Drabble, F/F, Fluff, Fluffcember 2020, Pre-Timeskip | Academy Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), Swimming, Teaching
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-11
Updated: 2020-12-11
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:07:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28083651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ren_Maisley/pseuds/Ren_Maisley
Summary: Leonie teaches Bernadetta how to swim. Bernadetta doesn't want to disappoint her instructor.Written for Fluffcember Day 11: "Swimming"
Relationships: Leonie Pinelli/Bernadetta von Varley
Series: FE3H Fluffcember 2020 [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2046761
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7





	Swimming Lesson

**Author's Note:**

> This was written on Bernadetta's birthday in Japan... I think.
> 
> HAPPY BIRTHDAY BERNIE BEAR!!!!

“Alright Bern, we’ve practiced kicking, using your arms, and treading water,” Leonie said, pushing her water-logged hair out of her eyes. “Now it’s time for you to swim all the way over there.” She pointed to a dense bunch of lily-pads floating along the edge of the pond.

“What?” Bernadetta protested. She sank lower into the water, leaving only her head above the surface. “I don’t think I’m ready for that….”

“Sure you are!” Leonie said, her grin full of confidence. “If you take a straight path from here, the water remains shallow, so you’re still able to touch the bottom.”

Bernadetta groaned. She didn’t want to disappoint Leonie, who had kindly offered to teach her how to swim when Bernie mentioned she couldn’t, but she really wasn’t confident about swimming yet. Her skinny body stayed submerged, protected against the wind that chilled her and her waterlogged underclothes when she stood up. She avoided Leonie’s eyes.

Her instructor tapped her chin. “You know,” Leonie offered, moving a bit closer to Bernadetta, “I can hold you up by your stomach and walk alongside you as you swim.” She saw Bernie redden and hastened to give her an out. “Totally up to you though!”

Bernadetta hugged her legs close to her body, submerging her mouth so she could only breathe from her nose. Leonie was going to… touch her stomach? That seemed really really close, but Bernie didn’t want to seem helpless. She gave a small nod. “Okay.”

Leonie beamed. “Great!” She moved to a spot next to Bernadetta as the purple-haired girl started to stand, a little unsure about how she should be positioned.

“Alright,” Leonie said, slowing to a stop close to Bernie. “You might wanna start horizontal to the water, and I’ll help you float by holding you up.”

Bernadetta gulped and reluctantly brought her legs back, stretching out across the surface of the water. She wasn’t good at floating on her front or her back, but Leonie quickly remedied that by placing her hands below Bernie’s middle and lifting.

Bernadetta’s immediate impulse was to flail out of her touch, but after a few tense moments Bernie realized that Leonie’s hold felt very secure, and not suffocating at all. Leonie seemed encouraged by Bernie’s calm reaction.

“Alright, while I’m holding you up, try to swim to those lily-pads as fast as you can!” Leonie commanded. 

Bernie took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and kicked and swam as fast as she could. Leonie’s encouragement began strong and quickly faded out as the new swimmer’s concentration tuned out everything but her task. She pumped her legs and pedaled her arms, and would have swam into the weeds if not for Leonie’s intervention. When she felt Leonie’s hand on her wrist she drifted to a stop and stood straight up in the water, breathing heavily.

“That was great, Bern!” Leonie exclaimed, pulling her back away from her finish line. “You didn’t even need me!”

Bernadetta, who was giggling a little with how pleased she was with herself, gave Leonie a strange look. “What do you mean, ‘I didn’t need you?’”

Leonie laughed, her smile unwavering. “I only held you up for the first couple seconds or so. You looked so determined, so I let you go, and you didn’t even notice and swam that whole way yourself. You were amazing!”

Bernadetta felt a rush of accomplishment, but wanted to play it cool. “I guess I was, huh.” She moved closer to Leonie. “But that doesn’t change the fact that you tricked me!” she pouted. Bernie lightly punched Leonie in the shoulder with her wrinkled fist. “N-not cool.”

Leonie shrugged. “Sorry! I’ll make it up to you.” She gestured back to the shore where their towels and overclothes were left. “Let’s dry off and head into town. We’ll get some sherbet, my treat.”

Bernie nodded slightly, trying to ignore her blush. She took Leonie’s outstretched hand and followed her out of the pond.

She had made great progress, but she was glad these lessons with Leonie didn’t have to end quite yet.


End file.
